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three things we love
Woody Guthrie Songs to Grow On
Woody Guthrie is quoted as saying “"You can follow your book and your map of wars, but I'll go and follow my kids..”
Woody Guthrie is without a doubt one of America's most important national treasures, famous for writing This Land Is Your Land (here joyfully sung in 2009 at Obama's Inauguration--I give you permission to sing along) but many people do not realize that he wrote a myriad of children's songs as well--for his own kids as well as instructional and fun "lessons" for children in general. I originally came across Woody's 20 Grow Big Songs as a book and cassette on a seconds table at a local bookstore many moons ago and for some reason it popped into my head the other day. It brought me back to my daughter Morgan's childhood and the hours Gert, Morgan and I spent singing along. Here are some of my favorites: Wake Up, Don't You Push Me Down, Cleano and Pick It Up. You don't have to be young or have kids to enjoy these songs now as much as we did then but if you are lucky enough to have young ones around you, I am sure they will enjoy these songs too!
Eckhart Tolle
Do you ever spend time wondering what happens when you die? I never gave it much thought until I had a series of losses that left me simply saying, “Where did they go?” In order to deal with my grief, I gave myself a crash course on everything death and dying, afterlife, past lives, reincarnation, how animals grieve, mediumships--you name it, I read about it. And it all led to the deeply profound question: does consciousness survive death. Is the brain just like a radio playing our consciousness or is consciousness an invention of our brains? I have never heard this question examined in such a thoughtful and clear way as by listening here to the German spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle.
Dr. Christopher Kerr
Dr. Christopher Kerr is the Chief Medical Officer and Chief Executive Officer for Hospice and Palliative Care in Buffalo, New York. Canadian-born, Kerr comes from a long line of physicians, fifth generation to be exact. He has explored and researched what he has found as near-universal experiences that precede death, often providing comfort, insight and significance into the life led and the death anticipated. I have a particular interest in this story as I witnessed my own mom's actions on her deathbed, extending her arm up to the ceiling like a ballet dancer's port de bras, her eyes opening wide as if she was seeing something. At the time, I had no idea what it was that she was doing and thought it was an involuntary muscle. Only later did I realize after hearing from a hospice nurse that it was a common occurence to see dying patients seemingly "reaching out to something"--that had up until then never occurred to me.
The research team at Hospice & Palliative Care Buffalo has published multiple studies on this topic and documented over 1,500 end-of-life events, many of which are videotaped (I have my mom's movement videotaped as well since I was trying to ask my sister, who wasn't there at the time, what my mom was doing). Dr. Kerr has also authored a very interesting Ted Talk entitled "I See Dead People: Dreams and Visions of the Dying" that I include here, where he talks from personal experience about this medically ignored topic. The talk has been viewed by approximately 3 million viewers and has been the subject of reports on many prominent publications and news programs including the BBC, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Scientific American Mind, Huffington Post and Psychology Today.
painting of the week
Gert Mathiesen, Boat Echoes of the Sea, handcolored mixed media woodcut, 15” x 44” $4500. Also available as a giclee print in varying sizes. Email for a price quote.
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Another Self Portrait going grey in the time of Covid…
About The Author
New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow created the creative lifestyle blog “things we love” in an effort to foster a sense of community during times of isolation and reflection. To read more about her and her art, visit her website and check out the essay written by the Hammond Museum's Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow.